We’ve got pro women’s soccer and pro women’s hockey. Time for pro women’s basketball too.<\/p>\n
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Published Aug 15, 2025 \u00a0\u2022\u00a0 Last updated 2\u00a0hours ago \u00a0\u2022\u00a0 3 minute read<\/p>\n
<\/a><\/p>\n You can save this article by registering for free here<\/a>. Or sign-in<\/a> if you have an account.<\/p>\n A professional women\u2019s soccer team. A professional women\u2019s hockey team.<\/p>\n Advertisement 2<\/p>\n This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below.<\/p>\n THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY<\/p>\n Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada.<\/p>\n Exclusive articles by top sports columnists Patrick Johnston, Ben Kuzma, J.J. Abrams and others. 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Plus, Canucks Report, Sports and Headline News newsletters and events.Unlimited online access to The Province and 15 news sites with one account.The Province ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition to view on any device, share and comment on.Daily puzzles and comics, including the New York Times Crossword.Support local journalism.<\/p>\n REGISTER \/ SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES<\/p>\n Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience.<\/p>\n Access articles from across Canada with one account.Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments.Enjoy additional articles per month.Get email updates from your favourite authors.<\/p>\n THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK.<\/p>\n Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience.<\/p>\n Access articles from across Canada with one accountShare your thoughts and join the conversation in the commentsEnjoy additional articles per monthGet email updates from your favourite authorsSign In or Create an Account<\/p>\n or<\/p>\n Article content<\/p>\n Vancouver, finally, is jumping on the global movement that is the growth of elite women\u2019s sport.<\/p>\n Article content<\/p>\n Article content<\/p>\n But hosting the WNBA for more than just a one-off game, as Rogers Arena<\/a> did Friday for the Seattle Storm vs. the Atlanta Dream, remains very much a dream.<\/p>\n Toronto is getting an expansion team, the Tempo, starting next summer. There are no plans for now for future expansion, NBA Canada\u2019s Cheryl Sebastian told Postmedia on Friday.<\/p>\n No Vancouver on the radar, but there\u2019s no denying the momentum the WNBA and women\u2019s pro sports in general is seeing in Canada.<\/p>\n The WNBA has tangible evidence of this, Sebastian said.<\/p>\n \u201cViewership (in Canada) is up,\u201d she said. Subscriptions to the WNBA\u2019s League Pass service, which offers access to every game on the schedule, is up too.<\/p>\n Canucks Report<\/p>\n Thanks for signing up!<\/p>\n Article content<\/p>\n Advertisement 3<\/p>\n This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below.<\/p>\n Article content<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re the only country with our own social media channels,\u201d she added. They wouldn\u2019t set that up without believing there was an audience to hit.<\/p>\n There are lifelong fans to be made, Sebastian said. They know that connecting fans for the first time has a long-lasting effect.<\/p>\n Among the promotions they put together during the visit this week was painting WNBA-distance three-point lines on local courts. Five outdoor courts at parks around Vancouver \u2014 at Stanley Park, Hastings Community Park, Gaston Park, Kingcrest Park and Queen Elizabeth Park \u2014 are getting the new lines painted on their courts.<\/p>\n The idea, Sebastian explained, is to keep their league front-of-mind even after the WNBA carnival leaves town.<\/p>\n \u201cIt provides the opportunity to get closer to the game,\u201d she said of legacies like this initiative, which they are calling \u201cLine It Up.\u201d<\/p>\n Advertisement 4<\/p>\n This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below.<\/p>\n Article content<\/p>\n Getting tied into the grassroots, making pro women\u2019s sport be more than just an idea, to feel truly real, will only snowball everything.<\/p>\n In North America, basketball has been at the forefront of this. The WNBA\u2019s viewership numbers are exploding. Caitlin Clark signed a $28-million, eight-year endorsement deal with Nike. That\u2019s another example of how real this has all become.<\/p>\n The key is making it all feel unique, its own thing. The WNBA has always played through the summer. The games are far more accessible for average fans, even in their home markets.<\/p>\n The uniqueness extends to the two extant Canadian women\u2019s pro leagues, the PWHL and the Northern Super League, the women\u2019s league which launched this summer in Canada with six teams across the country.<\/p>\n Advertisement 5<\/p>\n This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below.<\/p>\n Article content<\/p>\n Growing up in Cranbrook, Rylind MacKinnon didn\u2019t have anything to look to beyond collegiate hockey and women\u2019s hockey at the Olympics. She got to play at the University of B.C., captaining the Thunderbirds for two years.<\/p>\n Now she is being paid to play in the PWHL, last season with the Toronto Sceptres, this season with the Boston Fleet.<\/p>\n The PWHL vibe is very much its own thing, one that sets it apart.<\/p>\n \u201cIn Toronto, they had made a poster board, for every person on the team, with like a nickname and a catchphrase, which they hung up in the arena,\u201d she said. \u201cThe kids made you friendship bracelets and stuff like that. It\u2019s a little bit of a different dynamic.\u201d<\/p>\n The Vancouver Rise are chasing their own dynamic by playing at Swangard Stadium, which by its more intimate nature brings fans and players closer together.<\/p>\n That is the real key \u2014 giving fans a real chance to feel like they are in the same boat as the stars they\u2019re cheering for. It has worked for the WNBA elsewhere.<\/p>\n Surely, it would work for the WNBA here. It\u2019s time for someone to step up and make a team happen.<\/p>\n pjohnston@postmedia.com<\/a><\/p>\n Read More<\/p>\n Hannah Miller, finally, finds her way home with PWHL Vancouver<\/p>\n![\"wnba\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/0816-col-pj-1.jpg\")
Ezi Magbegor of the Seattle Storm blocks a shot by Rhyne Howard of the Atlanta Dream at Climate Pledge Arena on Aug. 13 in Seattle. Photo by Steph Chambers \/Getty ImagesArticle content<\/p>\n![\"The](\"https:\/\/dcs-static.gprod.postmedia.digital\/19.3.2\/websites\/images\/identity\/logo-identity-vp.svg\"){kind=logo}
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